[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 74 (Thursday, May 20, 1999)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1040-E1041]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         LACKENMIER RETIREMENT

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                         HON. PAUL E. KANJORSKI

                            of pennsylvania

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, May 20, 1999

  Mr. KANJORSKI. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to an 
extremely well-respected community leader, educator, and close personal 
friend, Reverend James R. Lackenmier. On May 20th, Father Lackenmier 
will step down as President of King's College in Wilkes-Barre, 
Pennsylvania after twenty-five years of distinguished service to this 
fine institution. Father Lackenmier combines the rare traits of having 
the executive acumen of a Fortune 500 CEO, the devotion to young people 
of a lifelong educator, and the warmth of community spirit of a man who 
has truly embraced ``The Valley with a heart.'' I am pleased and proud 
to join in a community-wide salute as Father Lackenmier leaves 
Northeastern Pennsylvania for new pursuits.
  The eldest son of Harold and Margaret Murphy Lackenmier, Father 
Lackenmier was born in Lackawanna, New York. He graduated from Canisius 
High School in Buffalo, New York in 1956, entered the congregation of 
Holy Cross in 1957, and was ordained in Rome in 1964. Father Lackenmier 
earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from Stonehill College in 
Massachusetts and his S.T.L. from the Pontifical Gregorian University 
in Rome. Father Lackenmier went on to receive a master's degree in 
English from the University of North Carolina in 1968 and a master's 
degree in Religion and Literature from the University of Chicago in 
1970. He has subsequently been awarded six honorary degrees from Our 
Lady of Holy Cross College in New Orleans, University of Portland, 
Wilkes University, College Misericordia, Luzerne County Community 
College, and the University of Scranton.
  Education has been Father Lackenmier's focus; he served first as an 
English teacher in Notre Dame High School in Connecticut and later as 
the chair of the English department at St. Peter's High School in 
Gloucester, Massachusetts. Father Lackenmier served as the chaplin at 
St. Xavier College in Chicago and later as the director of the 
Collegiate Formation program at Notre Dame's Moreau Seminary in 
Indiana. In 1974, Father Lackenmier arrived at King's College in 
Wilkes-Barre to serve first as the Director of Campus Ministry, then 
later as Director of Development, and finally as President.
  Mr. Speaker, Father Lackenmier has had a distinguished career while 
here with us in Northeastern Pennsylvania. He serves on a long list of 
Boards and belongs to the prestigious Pennsylvania Society, the Knights 
of Columbus, and the Rotary Club, where he is a Paul Harris Fellow. He 
has been awarded the Distinguished Eagle Scout Award and the Wyoming 
Valley Interfaith Council Citation for Devoted Service to the Cause of 
Human Welfare and the Boy Scouts named him their Distinguished Citizen 
for 1994.
  Mr. Speaker, I have had the opportunity to work closely with Father 
Lackenmier during my tenure in Congress on various projects, including 
the Earth Conservancy, an ambitious community effort to clean up 
thousands of acres of mine-scarred land in the Wyoming Valley. Father 
Lackenmier, along with his academic colleague Dr. Christopher Breiseth 
of Wilkes University, provided great leadership and courage in guiding 
what is now an award-winning organization, especially during its 
tumultuous early days. I will be forever grateful for his steadfast 
devotion to making this dream a reality.
  I will also be forever grateful for the many thoughtful gestures he 
provided to me personally over the years, especially his kindness to me 
and my family during the period following the loss of my mother.
  Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to have had the opportunity to bring the 
accomplishments of this fine community leader to the attention of my 
colleagues. In August, Father Lackenmier will go to Salsburg, Austria 
to direct the University of Portland's foreign studies center. He will 
carry with him my sincere gratitude for a job well done and my very 
best wishes for continued success and fulfillment.

[[Page E1041]]



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